NVIDIA RTX vs GTX – Best Comparison 2023

There were a lot of queries regarding which card will win the battle between NVIDIA RTX vs GTX. So, I have researched about this topic and have collected the best information for you. Now assume you want to construct a computer or replace the Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) of your current PC since it has become obsolete.

You go to the market in search of a new one and are presented with two options: GTX and RTX. You have no idea what any of this means and make the incorrect choice. This essay intends to assist you in such a circumstance by providing a basic understanding of the differences between these phrases.

While there are numerous competitors in the GPU industry (mostly Nvidia and AMD), we will only discuss Nvidia processors since they are the most prevalent, and the terms GTX and RTX refer to them.

Nvidia’s RTX Series Graphics Cards are unquestionably the best choice for gaming and other productivity tasks. They are now in their second generation (as of the writing of this book), with the next one on the horizon. These are exciting times.

However, a few years ago, it was the time for GTX Series. Despite the fact that Nvidia first introduced GTX in 2008, we feel the GTX 9 and 10 Series were the pinnacle. But what are the distinctions between GTX and RTX? How do GTX and RTX performance compare?

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Exactly What is This GTX?

Nvidia’s GeForce brand has a sub-brand known as GTX, which stands for “Giga Texel Shader eXtreme.” GTX is a version of the GeForce brand. They were originally shown to the public in 2008 as part of series 200, which was given the codename Tesla. The GTX 260 and the GTX 280 were the initial products in this series, and the GTX 260 was the more affordable option.

The release of these cards also had an effect on the naming strategy, and since since the release of these cards, Nvidia GPUs have employed a name scheme that consists of the prefixes GTX/GT followed by their model number. This naming method was implemented after the cards were released.

Nvidia updated the microarchitecture that its graphics cards are built on with each subsequent significant release in a series. For example, the series 200 and 300 were based on the Tesla architecture, while the series 400 and 500 were based on the Fermi architecture, and so on.

The most recent GTX series, number 16, includes graphics cards with model numbers GTX 1650, GTX 1660, GTX 1660Ti, and their Super versions. These were released in 2019 and are based on the Turing computer architecture.

What Exactly is RTX?

In addition to being a sub-brand of GeForce, RTX is an abbreviation that stands for “Ray Tracing Texel eXtreme.” Because the RTX GPUs were created specifically to handle real-time ray tracing, the movie ended up looking far more stunning than it would have otherwise. They were first introduced in 2018, and its architecture is based on Turing.

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These RTX cards include the RTX 2060, RTX 2070, RTX 2080, and RTX 2080Ti, as well as the Super versions of the RTX 2060 and RTX 2070. Both the DXR and DLSS extensions of Microsoft’s DirectX12 are supported by these graphics’ cards (Deep Learning Super Sampling).

Distinction between NVIDIA RTX vs GTX:

GeForce is a brand of GPUs designed by Nvidia that includes variants such as GTX and RTX. Before the terms GTX and RTX were used or existed, terms such as GT and GS were popular among GPUs, but nowadays they only provide entry-level graphics processing capability and for using more graphics-intensive applications such as games, graphic engines, and much more, you should possess the GTX or RTX cards.

The 16XX series is the most recent addition to the GTX series, although for the purpose of clarity and comparability, we would evaluate the differences between a GTX 1080Ti (released in 2016) and an RTX 2080 (announced in 2019) since they are quite comparable with a little variation.

GTX is an abbreviation for Giga Texel Shader eXtreme, while RTX is an abbreviation for Ray Tracing Texel eXtreme. These are not easy technologies to grasp, but the most fundamental distinction between the two is that the RTX is particularly built for doing Real-Time Ray Tracing. In simpler words, it is used in video games to map the course of light as it interacts (reflects or refracts) with its environment in real-time. It results in more visually appealing locations, textures, and materials in the game.

As shown in the image, RTX GPUs provide very accurate lighting effects and rendering. However, higher aesthetics do not always imply better frame rates. Furthermore, there are few games on the market that enable ray tracing. Let’s have a look at the differences between the GTX 1080Ti and the RTX 2080.

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Graphics Card Comparison: NVIDIA RTX vs GTX

Let’s look at some GTX versus RTX comparative tables. The first table is a broad comparison, while the second compares the RTX 20 Series to the GTX 10 Series.

GeForce is a brand of GPUs designed by Nvidia that includes variants such as GTX and RTX. Before the terms GTX and RTX were used or existed, terms such as GT and GS were popular among GPUs, but nowadays they only provide entry-level graphics processing capability and for using more graphics-intensive applications such as games, graphic engines, and much more, you should possess the GTX or RTX cards.

The 16XX series is the most recent addition to the GTX series, although for the purpose of clarity and comparability, we would evaluate the differences between a GTX 1080Ti (released in 2016) and an RTX 2080 (announced in 2019) since they are quite comparable with a little variation.

🌟 Also, check out our separate post on AMD vs NVIDIA | Which GPU is Better?

GTX is an abbreviation for Giga Texel Shader extreme, while RTX is an abbreviation for Ray Tracing Texel extreme. These are not easy technologies to grasp, but the most fundamental distinction between the two is that the RTX is particularly built for doing Real-Time Ray Tracing. In simpler words, it is used in video games to map the course of light as it interacts (reflects or refracts) with its environment in real-time. It results in more visually appealing locations, textures, and materials in the game.

As shown in the image, RTX GPUs provide very accurate lighting effects and rendering. However, higher aesthetics do not always imply better frame rates. Furthermore, there are few games on the market that enable ray tracing. Let’s have a look at the differences between the GTX 1080Ti and the RTX 2080.

NVIDIA RTX: Best Graphics, Performance, and Future-Proofing GPU

There’s no denying that ray traced lighting looks better than conventional rendering. As a result, RTX cards are the superior option if you want to get the most out of your NVIDIA card’s graphics performance.

But it isn’t all. Because the current generation of NVIDIA cards only supports RTX cards, the most powerful NVIDIA cards are now all RTX exclusive (no GTX). RTX cards are therefore superior not just in terms of graphics performance, but also in terms of conventional rendering performance. If you want the finest gaming performance from an NVIDIA card, you should go with a 30-series RTX GPU—ideally, an RTX 3090.

Not to mention the advantages that technologies such as DLSS 2.0 bring to the table. These technologies are soon becoming the standard, with an increasing number of games supporting DLSS and ray tracing. This is becoming truer as AMD introduces its own versions of similar technologies, like FSR (FidelityFX Super Resolution) and Ray Accelerator-powered ray tracing. As a result, RTX is superior than GTX in terms of future-proofing.

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NVIDIA GTX: The Best Budget Option

However, NVIDIA’s GTX graphics cards are not without promise since they are sometimes significantly cheaper than RTX cards. This is particularly significant in light of the recent chip shortages.

Consider NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX 1660 Super. This card is more than capable of running most recent games at 1080p quality and over 60 frames per second. If you like eSports, the 1660 Super is more than capable of running eSports games at high refresh rates at 1080p and 1440p resolutions. The same may be said for older cards like as NVIDIA’s GeForce GTX 1070 and, in certain situations, the GeForce GTX 970. While chip shortages plagued GTX cards, they never reached the absurdly high costs seen with many of the current RTX cards.

While the chip scarcity continues and costs have risen, many potential PC builders may still discover that a GTX card is all they can afford. This may not be what was meant by “cheap graphics card” in the past. While GTX cards lack the bells, whistles, and mind-blowing performance of the newest RTX cards, they perform well for classic rendering and make an excellent budget gaming PC.

Conclusion

In the field of graphics cards, Nvidia is a market leader. There are two primary GPU series for them: GTX and RTX.

We covered the fundamentals of GTX and RTX graphics cards in this article. Following that, we looked at the differences and comparisons of GTX versus RTX GPUs.

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Nvidia’s GTX 1080Ti will provide better performance in some games, but it is not worth the additional cost, and since RTX cards include additional features such as Ray tracing and DLSS, it is a good choice for mid to high-end PCs, and since more and more games support ray tracing, it is a good choice for the present as well as the future. So, in our opinion, the fight between NVIDIA RTX vs GTX totally depends on the user requirements. That’s why chose carefully.

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